1. I don't know how many times I've heard: “The EU wants to be a country, otherwise why does a trade bloc need a flag and an anthem?”
2. Now we know the EU is so much more than a trade bloc, but let’s look at this hypothetically, shall we?
3. This is the flag for Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) 
4. This is their anthem
5. This is the flag for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) 
6. This is their anthem
7. This is the flag for the East African Community (EAC) 
8. This is their anthem
9. This is the flag for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
10. This is their anthem
11. This is the flag for the Central American Integration System (SICA) 
12. This is their anthem
13. This is the flag for the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) 
14. This is their anthem
15. This is the flag for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) 
16. This is their anthem ecowas.int/documentation/…
17. I’m honestly not sure if this emblem counts as a flag for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) 
18. And SAARC doesn’t have an anthem, but it definitely wants to have one… hindustantimes.com/world/will-saa…
19. In conclusion: Statistically speaking, if the EU was “just a trade bloc” it would be odd for it not to have a flag, or an anthem.
20. Even a regional organisation like the Arab League has a flag
21. And an anthem
22. Some anthems have been specifically written for the bloc, like this ASEAN one. 
23. Even the blocs that don’t have anthems almost always have flags. Be it Mercosur or the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) 
24. If you think that being part of a bloc, or an international organisation, that has a flag and an anthem is in some way proof of something, or an attack on your national identity, then I'm afraid you're in the global minority.
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